Chennai Express

Chennai Express is a movie which is made to generate laughs and to that extent in my opinion the movie has achieved that target.with a simple plot and simple jokes the movie has ensured that the audience will have a great time watching it and the die hard Shahrukh khan fans will not be disappointed. From the start the movie tries to merge the culture of north India and south India which resulted some romantic and creative moments in the movie which also generated good chemistry between the main actor and actress.Cinematography and art direction in this movie really captured the different cultures of south India and north India.Magnificent sets and music numbers added the well needed color to the movie. Chennai Express is a movie which is a fun and entertaining movie but it's no way near a thinking movie.The movie tries to give out a message pointing out how Indian woman lack freedom that message is lost through the comedy of the movie. For a person who is tired of watching movies with serious plot twists this movie is a well deserve break.But if a person tries to logically evaluate this movie then that person will fail miserably.To have a good time in the movie hall this is a well recommended movie.

Since the days of Chak De India, judging his grace & his stupendous acting skills, I am a huge fan of Shah Rukh Khan. A man of substance, he shows his skills in every film through his strong dialogue delivery & a firm grip over the emotional phenomena of the film. Every film he does, he makes it new for his audience & that is what makes him a stand-out actor.

Just few hours back, I caught up with his new film released today 'Chennai Express' directed by the Singham & Golmaal director Rohit Shetty, co-starring Deepika Padukone. It showed the King of Romance in a dynamic never-seen-before avatar & some fun-rolled laughter & Rohit Shetty style action.

Not much of surprise, the film touches all the genres of Bollywood completing a circle of entertainment. The film is the mixture of both: humour as well as some serious action. Frankly, I only liked Shetty for Golmaal & Singham. I found that mostly his films lacked sensibility & displayed some mindless insensitive action. But the fact that Shah Rukh Khan is starring in it made me really look into Chennai Express. Because as far as I know SRK, he is one of intelligent brains in Bollywood & knows completely well what he is up to.

Not deviating from Chennai Express, I would like to tell about the plot. The story is about Rahul, a 40 year unmarried man, who lives with his grandparents in Mumbai. After his grandfather's death, Rahul embarks on a journey to Goa but a series of confusions & misunderstanding, he finds himself in Chennai Express, a train that brings a big turn in the life of Rahul leading him to the place where he is destined to be.

Frustrated of his misfortune about not being able to go to Goa, Rahul meets Meenama, a South Indian girl from Kumban village in Chennai. She happens to be the pivotal part of the film that changes the monotony of Rahul's life. Rahul witnesses the ticket checker of the train being thrown in the waters from running train by the Tamil goons who happen to have kidnapped Meenama, thus being the only witness to the incident. Rahul is plunged into the world where he is being pestered, troubled & led into some humorous mishap. Shetty has depicted all of this in funny way that audience find themselves having the best time of their lives.

Chennai Express is sheer entertainment with fun-filled comedy all over. There is action, romance & humour throughout the film. It will leave smiles on everyone's faces when they leave the theatre. It is very impressive and unlike all Rohit Shetty films, it has the powerful element of emotion, the element which Indian directors use to uplift their standard of cinema. The songs are combination of foot-tapping numbers as well as some melodiously extravagant songs. If you have caught up with all Rohit Shetty films, this one you will be the most satisfied with. The first time collaboration of Rohit Shetty- SRK duo will undoubtedly set the box office registers ringing.

Reviewed by:Dare Devil Kid (DDK) Rating: 3.4/5 stars

Say what you want about Rohit Shetty, but the man sure does know to mindlessly entertain you, unlike many of his clones spawned over the past few years, who just numb your senses with their weak endeavors in trying to ape his brand of easygoing, risk-free cinema. "Chennai Express" is actually his best work since "All The Best" (though nothing compared to "All The Best"), and does have a semblance of plot and even some heart, which is usually not the case with most of his projects. The film exceeds expectations for the mere fact that it entertains you for most its duration.

Let's not even try and get into the other technical and creative aspects (or flaws) of the film, because if any of you'll went into a Rohit Shetty movie looking for a coherent plot narration or solid character development, then you'll need a serious reality check, or rather a surgical extraction of your prudish natures. The songs (barring the "1 2 3 4" number), editing, and production design are admittedly all over the place, but then again you should be well prepared to ignore these parameters. However, the background score and cinematography are surprisingly quite decent.

For his part, SRK necessarily hams it up delightfully to the hilt and renders a slightly tweaked and caricatured version of his now famous "Rahul" persona. And Deepika's acting is finally showing signs of real improvement. She literally shines in some scenes of the movie. What adds some required chutzpah to this potboiler, is the sizzling chemistry between the two. Their second film together gives sufficient indication that we might have the next hot jodi in Bollywood.

"Chennai Express" is melodramatic and over-the-top, but it certainly isn't tedious and long-drawn like most other wannabe masala films. You'll gladly lap it up over the disoriented "Bodyguards", "Ek Tha Tigers", "Singhams", "Himmatwalas", "Son Of Sardars" and "Rowdy Rathores" anyday. Most of the dialogues and gags are actually humorous and the action at the end at least makes the hero feel human (something that can't be said for the other staple masala heroes like Salman and Ajay). At the end of the day, if you don't analyze "Chennai Express" too much, you'll actually end up having quite an entertaining 140-minute ride.

Speed is the perfect word that describes Chennai Express. It is fun and entertaining. The film has no time for dull moments, for it does not stop anywhere. I won't tell its summary or story. However, its one scene related to DDLJ's train sequence can't simply leave my mind. It's funny as hell with the biggest twist that no one ever thought of before. There you go, I said it. The movie actually has more twists and turns that consist of full on comedy. Even the scary villains showed it perfectly well.

Now here are the things that wowed me about the movie. Srk: His comic timing was marvelous. But even more than that I was impressed by the amount of hard work he did for the action scenes. Deepika: No one could do the character of Meena better than her. She truly now is a professional actress who does not need to hide her weakness with short clothes and makeup. The goondas: They did have fewer lines to say, but their expressions were superb. Without them, this movie would have been dull. Editing: It's of highest quality and very visible with all the vfx work. It proved that Bollywood is now progressing aggressively. Story: I did not want it to end. I am glad that Rohet Shetty gave time for the love to blossom between Srk and Deepika.

I will go to watch Chennai Express again and even buy the disc once it's available. Private movie collection would be incomplete without it.

Chennai Express delivers what was expected from a commercial spicy masala entertainer. The movie has got no great story as the title tells you the one line "Express love on a journey". It's a usual SRK movie with Rohit Shetty style of execution.

Since the plot surrounds strong Tamil background I have to tell you my analysis in two views 1. As a viewer like me from Tamil Nadu 2. As a Non tamilian viewer As a viewer like me from Tamil Nadu it was like a spoof of 1980's Tamil movie and sometimes looked like humiliating Tamilians. For a non Tamil viewer like my friends they did like the Tamil base in it. Since we can see so much of Tamil influence in Bollywood industry nowadays. To start off with singers from Tamil, actors from Tamil like Dhanush directors from Tamil AR Murugadoss and choreographers from Tamil Prabhudeva. But it does promise you to stay glued to your seats by all the necessary ingredients.

SRK as usual a non serious Indian blushing types of hero and was yet again with his trade name Rahul. He does a great job and gives what was demanded for a film like this. At least this time he has come with a character with an age of 40.

Worth mention would be the lady lead Deepika Padukone she has done an excellent job by adapting the Tamil style of English and Hindi speaking. She was shown well in the movie with her beautiful makeover.

Satyaraj plays the father fits the role picture perfect. The villain has done justice to the role of Thangaballi. There are so many gigantic long haired fatty black goons you will see in the movie. Direction,Camera, Music and Editing were good as per requirements for a spicy masala.

Music was very good particularly "Titli" was a good breezy romantic number that makes us hum after we come out of the theater.

I have to say the positives were Deepika,SRK and music. Negatives were the sets and Tamil base were over colored and totally artificial.

Get in for a movie which has got something for everyone in the family to keep you entertained for 2 hours 20 mins.

-Reviewed by Sivakumar Balachandran

(bsiva84@gmail.com)